Sunday, June 26, 2011

Broad Superintendent Academy discussed by Education Week

On another post Anonymous wrote:

"FOCUS ON: LEADERSHIP
Critics Target Growing Army of Broad Leaders
As the number of influential school leaders trained by the Broad Superintendents Academy grows, so does the criticism surrounding the program.
June 7, 2011 - Education Week

http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2011/06/08/33broad_ep.h30.html

“Broad training . . . has drawn impassioned criticism from people who see it as a destructive force in schools and districts.

They say Broad-trained superintendents use corporate-management techniques to consolidate power, weaken teachers’ job protections, cut parents out of decision- making, and introduce unproven measures .

Sharon Higgins, who started a website called the Broad Report in 2009 after her school district in Oakland California had three Broad-trained superintendents in quick succession, each appointed by the state.

She said she grew alarmed when she started seeing principals and teachers whom she called “high-quality, dedicated people” force out. She contends in her blog that Broad superintendents are trained to aim for “maximum disruption” when they come to a district, without regard for parent or teacher concerns.

“Its like saying, let me come to your house and completely rearrange your furniture because I think your house is a mess. . . adding that other parents around the country have reached out to her to complain about their own Broad-trained school leaders.”

Pittsburgh Public Schools has been invaded by the Broad Foundation trainees and "residents" including the current and just previous superintendent.

(More to follow.)"

"More on BROAD:


Superintendents Academy grows, so does the criticism surrounding the program.
June 7, 2011 - Education Week

‘Corporate Training School’
“Likewise James Horn, an associate professor of education policy at Cambridge college in Massachusetts, keeps up a drumbeat of criticism in the blog School Matters. In one post, he referred to the academy as “Eli Broads corporate training school . . .for future superintendents who are trained how to use their power to hand over their systems to the Business Roundtable.”

“In an interview, Dr. Horn said that school officials trained by the program, graduate with a hostility to teachers. . .

Dr. Horn points not only to the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, but also the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation, as examples of what he sees as a worrisome trend of “venture philanthropy” in education. Venture philanthropists typically emphasize the imperative of getting results for their investment and maintain close ties to the organizations they fund.”

“What venture philanthropy is doing seems to me to be wielding influence not to help public institutions but to destroy public institutions or take control of them. Mr. Horn said, “This is a dangerous place, where corporations and government get mixed up.”

THE EVIDENCE IN PPS SUBSTANTIATES THE CLAIMS IN THIS EDUCATION WEEK ARTICLE AS PPS CONTINUES TO DECLINE AND SEEMS WELL ON ITS WAY TO BEING “DESTROYED AS A PUBLIC INSTITUTION” UNDER BROAD CONTROL."

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is why anything Detroit or Student First being seen as a positive is ridiculous.

Seriously, this cannot be new news to people that have been paying attention for the past 4 years.

Anonymous said...

8:04:

You're right; it wasn't intended as new news, just continuing confirmation of a national problem that is exacerbating here in PPS.

Vouchers and Students First are not an answer to the destruction of public education; but, public education is under serious attack from within due to the philosophy, control, power, and funding of entities such as Broad and Gates.

The more aware people, the public, the parents of those who depend on public education become, the better chance there is of electing people who really care about improving education for ALL children and informing them of the ever-growing negative outcomes for public schools under Broad and Gates influence.

Anonymous said...

The only way we can defend against the momentum of the Broad, Gates, Students First, Voucher, Charter movements is to help people become aware of the dangers and unintended, unanticipated, unwanted outcomes for the children who have little choice despite the claims and PR of said programs/

Spreading the word, so that people can ask the right questions and become more informed around the consequences of said program is only one strategy to save public education with provisions for equity and excellence that reaches all children.

Anonymous said...

Can we get a referendum question on the November ballot to remove the Broad and Gates influences from Pittsburgh?

I'm dead serious.

Questioner said...

Unfortunately- most Pittsburgh voters still have no idea what the Broad Foundation is or how the Broad and Gates Foundations are involved w/ public education in Pittsburgh. It would take a lot of education! And "removing influence" would probably be too vague.

Anonymous said...

The Broad Superintendent Academy is a consistent sponsor of NPR these days. Money talks and the pr wheels spin. It makes me ill every time I hear the sponsorship announcement.

Questioner said...

At some point the Broad Foundation will need acknowledge to itself that what it is doing is not working. And that there may be better ways for it to spend its money.

Anonymous said...

I have posted this at least 6 times.

Please read the book The Life and Death of the Great American School System.

http://www.npr.org/tablet/#story/?storyId=124729332

Anonymous said...

These people are corporate predators, they grabbing for control of everything and everyone

Anonymous said...

9:36 - There will be no need to acknowledge that its not working when the PR re-arranges and interprets the data to reflect that something is working somewhere (one grade) as if it were across the boards.

PR can change the data, the scenario, the consequences, en totale.

Anonymous said...

Can anyone explain where the Broad fellows come from? They are not superintendents' academy, right? I looked at the Broad site and the number of large districts helmed by academy grads is a surprise. If there as 6 sessions, 5 days in length, does that mean in 30 days you can learn to be a superintendent? The next class graduates in November, are there any jobs for those grads?

Anonymous said...

Here is the Broad residency link.

http://broadresidency.org/

You can search on Pittsburgh here and see who we are paying 90-130,000 a year.

http://broadresidency.org/residents/alumni.html

Anonymous said...

Broad Superintendent Academy.
The name conjures up certain mental pictures:

-Zombies
-Hitler Youth